Safety of Nova Scotia workers at risk?

Auditor general raises concerns about safety inspection system in province.

By Todd Humber

03/26/2002|hrreporter.com|Last Updated: 05/16/2002

Nova Scotia’s workplace inspection system is overburdened and could put the safety of workers at risk, the province’s auditor general charges.

In a recent report, Auditor General Ray Salmon said it could take more than 10 years at the current rate for the Department of Environment and Labour to complete an inspection of all businesses in the province.

“There’s a risk, isn’t there? We don’t want another Westray,” said Salmon, referring to the mine explosion that killed 26 workers in the early 1990s. “Volume of work and volume of activity has increased, which means if you haven’t been given additional resources, you’ve got a problem and we had a problem when Westray occurred.”